Oct 19 Church: In existence since 1866, South West Baptist Church celebrates 150 years

TheSouth West Baptist Church of Christchurch, which in the past has been known by many names including Lincoln Road Baptist, Lyttelton Street Baptist, Spreydon and Halswell Baptist, celebrated its 150 years of establishment over the weekend of October 14 – 16.

The celebrations included a street party, with food stalls, bouncy castles, magicians and live music. There was also an exhibit showcasing the last 150 years of the church’s history, with multimedia content and a photo exhibition.

Alan Jamieson, Senior Paster at the Church noted, "We began when Christchurch was a young town in an immigration boom, as 6,000 new residents arrived over a five year period. Two of those recent arrivals began the church with a sense of call, a dream, a conversation, the generous use of an old whare, a lot of prayer and hard work. This weekend we celebrate our story, our beginnings and embrace our DNA afresh."